Dutch fibre sensor firm raises €5m for industrial expansion
Dutch university spinout Optics11 has raised €5m to expand the development of its fibre-based sensors for industrial applications.
The funding round was led by new investor FORWARD.one and returning investor Value Creation Capital. Juha Van Riet will take over as CEO, coming from Siemens to grow the industrial sensor company’s global commercial operations and expand its product range.
The company is a spin out of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam to commercialise fibre optic sensors that are optimized for extreme conditions where electrical sensors typically fail, including deep sea, high-voltage, corrosive, radioactive, and very hot or cold environments. These sensors are used by government and commercial organizations to monitor subsea activity, electric grids, fuel plants, aircraft, civil infrastructure, and more.
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“Industrial hardware enables innovation across every sector, and the unique capabilities of Optics11’s technology will underpin new leaps forward,” said Robin van Boxsel, a partner at FORWARD.one. “We’re proud to add Optics 11 to our portfolio, and are confident that Juha’s leadership team will continue to grow the product and commercial possibilities across global markets.”
“State of the art fibre optic technologies from Optics11 help us understand critical infrastructure better. Its products and solutions are groundbreaking in many applications and very helpful in making the world a safer, cleaner and healthier place,” said Jos Bourgonje, managing partner of Value Creation Capital.
Van Riet takes over from Niek Rijnveld, who will serve as CEO of Optics11 Life, Optics11’s sibling life sciences unit.
“I strongly believe in the scale-up potential of Optics11 Industrial Sensing technology. Our solutions fundamentally increase accuracy and reproducibility of critical measurements; we remove blind spots and add previously unmeasurable data to our customers’ asset management systems. This is highly relevant for today’s energy, infrastructure and security market needs,” said Van Riet.
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